


The Lonely Vampire and The Little Witch

by TheWitchChugsHerCoffee



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Agoraphobia, Angst, Anxiety, Ben Solo - Freeform, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Ben uses sunlight to harm himself out of guilt, Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Foster Care, Friendship, Halloween, Kylo Ren - Freeform, Loneliness, Minor Character(s), Only happens in first chapter, POV Ben Solo, POV Rey (Star Wars), Platonic Reylo, Protective Ben Solo, References to Depression, Rey - Freeform, Rey Needs A Hug, Rey is 7 in the first chapter, Rey is a foster child, Reylo - Freeform, Self Harm, Vampire Ben, based off my own personal childhood, but with vampires, vampire, very brief in the first chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:35:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26438809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWitchChugsHerCoffee/pseuds/TheWitchChugsHerCoffee
Summary: Ben Solo is an agoraphobic vampire, surprisingly rare for his kind.Rey is a little girl in need of a friend.Ben wants to be brave for Rey, to show her that the world he fears can be kind.
Relationships: Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 43
Kudos: 55





	1. Candy Corn Pumpkin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben has an unexpected guest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, here it is, and I am nervous.  
> My first Reylo fic! Please read the notes fully!  
> Rey starts out at age 7, and is a child for majority of the fic, so this is all purely platonic.  
> Ben is VERY OLD, and his fear of the outside is not normal for vampires in this world. Ben has anxiety stemming from his days of being human.
> 
> CONTENT WARNING FOR THIS CHAPTER!
> 
> Rey’s dad is Sheev, but he is not described by appearance in this chapter. He is a jerk, and verbally abusive towards Rey in this chapter, so heads up.  
> ALSO, as you have see from the tags, this chapter is the only one that contains self harm. Ben burns his hand with a small beam of light because of guilt and anger, and it only happens in this chapter. 
> 
> Other than that, I hope you enjoy this chapter! and I will be posting more soon! Happy spooky season!

Ben was a creature who preferred silence and isolation. His kind were as old as time, and yet most of them have managed to move smoothly along with humanity. Ben, however, felt trapped in the modern world, and shut himself away when it became obvious that humans were advancing much more quickly than he anticipated.

He found that the years pass quite quickly in his large, darkened home. He doesn’t need to hunt, as technology created by the more tech savvy vampires have allowed his people to order the blood they need with a click of a button. This is the only thing he uses the internet and his dusty desktop for, and as technology advanced, soon that small website turned into an app on a smartphone he rarely used.

At first, many of his old friends found his aversion to change amusing, but as time passed and he showed even more resistance, they eventually left him behind. He does not blame them, having enough self awareness to realize his droll lifestyle could be exhausting to the typically exuberant vampire. While Ben lived a comfortable life through careful investment and family fortune, it was more common to find vampires in high status positions, running nightclubs, or simply enjoying the world when the sun was down.Many would say that Ben was agoraphobic, but he would most likely disagree. Though, he does shudder and shake at the thought of needing to go into town for anything, and his repulsion to the internet and his smartphone soon become a dependency; ordering online has it’s perks.

One dreaded talent humans seem to have is their ability to fill the planet with as many of their kind as possible. To his dismay, Ben’s small village, originally founded by him, no less, soon turned into a bustling, small city. Houses were built around his property, streets were paved, his beloved forest cut down to make way for more humans. Children ran out and about his sidewalk, their squealing laughter during the day waking him from his rest. However, out of humanities many faults, Ben found their abundance of offspring the most tolerable. He amused himself in the early hours of the night, watching young people attempt to brave their way up to his home, only to run away screaming as he slams a door or flickers a light to startle them.

It is the adults who bother Ben the most. For many years, agents, social workers, and police have all come to his door, attempting to have him allow them in. Some wanted to buy the property, some were concerned that he was an elderly man either dying or dead, some simply did not like the idea of a faceless stranger in their town, but Ben never faltered in his quest for isolation. Fortunately, Ben had a talent for suggestion, weaving magic through his voice to gently push the humans away from his door. More years passed, and they seemed to ignore his home completely, and as old as it was he received notice one year that it was considered a historic building. To celebrate, he had ordered a new gold watch.

Ben found himself finally relaxing in this new, terrifying world, that is, until one Halloween night. Usually, parents and children alike avoided his home, especially after it was labeled as historically important. He’d sit by the window, cloaked in darkness, to watch the festivities from the safety of his home. The streets were aglow with warm orange holiday lights, and the laughter of children carried across the chilly air.All of the houses around his home were lit and decorated, while his own remained dark and unwelcoming. So perhaps, that is why he felt a small jolt of surprised when a two figures quickly made their way up his stone path. He eyed the pair wearily, easily seeing a small child dragging an adult to his door.

With a sigh, Ben stood, and quickly made his was to the door with no intention of answering it. His ears perked at the tired tone of the adult.

“Rey, this house is empty, let’s go.” Ben felt a small amount of sympathy for the man, but quirked his head at the accent.

“Please!” The child’s voice rang clear, full of desperation, same accent, and Ben was certain it was accompanied by pleading eyes. The old vampire huffed softly, leaning against the wall to listen.

“Fine,” the man replied shortly, and Ben felt his lip curl in annoyance. Perhaps he _would_ open the door, if only to correct the bad attitude in the man’s voice. But Ben took a useless breath, and remained against his wall.

The child seemed to not be affected though, giving a cheery squeal of delight, and knocking firmly at his door. The old vampire forced himself not to flinch in guilt as the minutes passed, and her knocks became less and less confident.

“We’re leaving,” the voice grumbled.

“Daddy-,” the little girl began to plead, voice thick with unshed tears.

“ ** _Now, Rey_**!” Ben winced, and felt anger pool in his gut as the man hollered at the little girl, at Rey. He slapped his hand over his lips as he felt his fangs lengthen with his rage. But he remained still, even as Rey whimpered helplessly, surely being dragged away by her arm by that brute of a father.

Ben stayed by his door, even as the sun rose, small streams of light pouring through the small gaps in his heavy curtains. His eyes fell to one cheery beam, the drifting dust motes momentarily distracting him from how terrible he felt. Quickly, he lifted his hand into the small pin of light, hissing harshly as it burned away at him immediately. He pulled it back before it could cause too much damage, but it would be enough to leave a permanent scar; a reminder of his cowardice.

With a heavy sigh, Ben opened the coat closest to grab a heavy jacket, threw it over himself, and made his way back to his bedroom to sleep. When night fell, Ben left his room feeling oddly trapped, and decided to step onto his porch for some fresh air, as useless as it were. The first thing his sharp eyes saw as he opened the door, was a bright orange, little pumpkin shaped candy sitting on the top of his railing.


	2. Glass Pumpkin and Bat Lights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben and Rey have a chat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, here’s another chapter! 
> 
> Content warning just in case, Ben’s burn scar is mentioned in this chapter.

The year following that fateful, infuriating Halloween night seemed to pass unusually slow for Ben. He had been in a foul mood for months, even managing to lose control of his strength, and crushing his phone in his hand without realizing; Ben was thankful that he kept the older model handy.

Every once in a while, his fingers would run over the rough scar on the back of his hand, hoping the little girl was alright. Guilt gnawed at his mind more often than not, and it was starting to frustrate Ben beyond reason. It got to a point where he impulsively ordered a bag of the same kind of pumpkin shaped candy corn that he was sure the little girl had left.It arrived a few days later, in a ridiculously large box, and Ben growled at how foolish he was being. But then he ordered some Halloween chocolates, and then a vintage glass pumpkin container, and then a string of bat lights, all surprisingly easy to find despite it being July.

His little haul of impulse buys came quickly, and found their places in his home.The glass pumpkin was larger than he had anticipated, so it stayed on his dining table, the candies were hidden away in his empty cabinets, and the string lights were pinned into a cork board he did not remember buying. They didn’t at all match the elegant, antique decor, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

Before the vampire knew it, the air began to chill, and Halloween was once again right around the corner. Ben found himself staring blindly at the scar more and more often as the day approached, startling himself when he realized what he was doing. But the guilt that had been fading, came back at full strength, and he was practically tearing the cabinet doors off their hinges to get to the two bags of candy.Ben hoped they were still good, worrying that his stupid decision would get the little girl sick. _If she even came this time_ , he reminded himself glumly. But on Halloween night, he poured both bags worth of candy into the glass pumpkin, and used some old tape to hang the string of lights onto the glass above his door. 

Ben paced, unsure of why he was even bothering to do this, but when his eyes wandered to the discarded candy corn pumpkin bag, he took a seat on the floor to wait. The air slowly filled with the sounds of human children and Halloween music, and Ben stayed frozen by the door. With every hour that passed, he felt his stomach knot further.By one in the morning, he was ready to call it a night, before a small knock startled him into levitating. He remained hovering in the air, staring intensely at the door, wondering if he imagined the sound, but then it happened again.

“Hello?” Ben dropped immediately when he heard the shy voice on the other side of the door, knowing it was Rey. “I saw your lights,” his eyes flickered up the the battery powered string lights, before taking a step forward.

“It is very late,” he spoke quietly, and waited for her to respond.

“Sorry,” she sounded pitiful, and Ben instantly regretted his wording.

“I,” He stumbled over what to say to reassure the child, “I simply meant, where are your parents?” The long pause after his question began to worry him. But she answered, her voice sounding thick.

“Dunno,” Ben became alarmed, only barely willing himself not to fling open the door. “I live with Mrs. Green now,” she said softly, “but she doesn’t like Halloween. Had to wait till she went to bed to leave the house.”

Ben thunked his forehead against the wooden door. “That isn’t at all safe, child.” He heard a sniffle, but she didn’t say anything. Ben sighed heavily, hoping she didn’t plan on sleeping on his porch. “Behind you, on the step.” His sharp ears heard her little feet tap on the wood, and then she gasped.

“Is this for me?” She had the same cheery lilt as the first night he heard her, and Ben couldn’t help the soft smile on his face.

“Just the candy, not the bowl.” He raised his voice slightly, conscience of her limited human hearing.

“It’s a pumpkin!” the child giggled, and Ben hummed happily.

“That it is,”

“Oh!” She exclaimed, “I swiped this from Mrs. Green’s garden. You didn’t have a Jack-o’-lantern last time.” Ben could not see what she was talking about, but guessed that it was most likely a pumpkin.

“It isn’t good to steal,” he said, amused. He heard a small huff, and chuckled.

“Alright,” She said, her voice heavy with annoyance no child her age should be feeling. “I won’t steal the next one,” Ben’s ears perked at her words.

“Next one?” he asked curiously. She giggled again, and he smiled again.

“For next year, sir.” The little girl chuckled as if it were the most obvious answer in the world. Ben frowned slightly.

“Ben,” he said quickly, before regret could settle in his gut, “Or Mr. Solo, if you prefer.” He added shyly. Good Lord, he was rusty at talking to anyone, let alone a human child.

“I’m Rey!” She said it proudly, her voice bright, and Ben couldn’t help but laugh.

“Nice to meet you Rey, now take your candy and go home.” Ben heard her inhale sharply, realizing how she might take his words, “What I mean, is that, it is not safe for a child to be out this late. And I’m sure you don’t want to get into trouble with your caretaker.” The vampire pressed his ear into the door, hoping she didn’t take what he said the wrong way.

“Okay,” she mumbled glumly, and Ben sighed in relief. The sounds of crinkling wrappers being stuffed into a bag was soon followed by the gentle closing of the glass pumpkin, and he heard her stand to leave.

“Don’t eat all of that at once, or you’ll get sick,” Ben did not remember much of being a human child, but he did know that too much of anything sweet could make them ill.

“Alright,” her voice was unsure, “Goodnight, Mr. Solo,” and Ben heard her run quickly down his steps without waiting for his reply. He opened the door when she turned the corner, and he transformed to take flight. Ben kept his eyes on the little girl running through the darkened streets, her bright purple scarf trailing behind her like violet fire. He watched as she hopped a stone fence, and as she climbed her way up the wall of an old house, and watched still when she slipped through the propped open window.Ben had a feeling that she had done this before, many times in fact, and worried at his bottom lip with his fangs. She was practically an infant, why was she running around without being watched?

The old vampire felt completely exhausted, and decided to walk home rather than transform again and fly. That short interaction was the most he’d ever had with any creature in decades, and it had drained him. Soon though, he found himself standing in front of his foreboding home, and tried to imagine what it looked like to a small human child. He squatted, guessing her height, and looked up, but his ability to see in the dark lessened the effect. Sighing once again, Ben headed up the path, grabbed both glass and real pumpkins, and headed inside to retire early.


	3. One Man’s Trash is A Little Girl’s Treasure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben is distractible.

In the weeks after Ben watched little Rey scale a wall like an expert cat burglar, the reclusive vampire took to Googling gardening tips. Rey’s gift pumpkin sat on his office desk, but he was worried that it would start to rot. It took him an entire night to clean up his large, wild garden, and then he sat by to wait for his order of supplies. Part of him wondered why he simply didn’t go into town at nightfall to buy soil from a shop, another wondered why he was bothering to plant pumpkins so soon before the seasonal snow fall; he ignored those little voices completely.

Ben had already ordered what he needed from a local shop, wasn’t that enough? He was doing his best to ignore the concerning situation that Rey was in, and focusing on his garden was helping somewhat. However, he found himself wandering the town at night in his bat form, eyes scanning the ground for a little figure in a purple scarf. And Ben finally admitted to himself that trying to garden was useless because he was distracted.

He had caught sight of her more than once, either sitting on random porches, or digging through garbage cans like a little raccoon. He wondered if she was being adequately fed, thinking she was turning to bins for food, but quickly realized Rey just enjoyed taking little things she considered to be treasure. More often than not, he’d follow her to make sure she got back to the old house safely, feeling an odd mixture of fondness and worry as she dragged her little cloth satchel of garbage up the wall to her window. 

Around the Christmas season that same year, Rey’s little bag hard torn beyond repair on a sharp bit of metal, and it was the first time he’d seen Rey cry. Ben had heard her cry once before, but that was nothing compared to the heartbreaking look of hopelessness on her little face. She went home early that night, and Ben decided to give her a gift for Christmas. A few nights before Christmas Eve, Ben found himself elbows deep in a pile of antique junk he had collected over his long life. He soon found what he was looking for, and pulled out a soft leather satchel from the box.

Happy warmth filled his dead heart, and a wide smile found its home on Ben’s lips. This bag was one of the only things he had left from his days as human, but it held no real sentimental value. It was a sturdy little bag, embroidered with vines and fading flowers, he once used to hold scrolls, but it would be fine for Rey’s trash treasure. On Christmas night, Ben left the little bag inside a bin he knew Rey checked the most often, and waited in a tree for her predictable escape. He watched through the large windows of the old house, as children ran about with toys, hoping to catch sight of Rey. He did see her at one point, as she sulked against the window of her room, glaring at the cheery lights outside, and dress in a ridiculous sweater. Ben wanted to be amused by her grumpy little expression, but couldn’t stop the pit of sadness weighing down his gut. _Shouldn’t children be happy on Christmas?_

Ben lost himself in his thoughts, not noticing Rey leave the window, or that neighborhood began to settle and darken into the last night. He only managed to just jolt to attention at the sound of a door opening, and the crunching of snow as someone walked in his direction. The cold of winter had stopped her nights of climbing, rather now she slipped through the back door, dressed in an oversized coat and boots, bright purple scarf a consistent piece of her wardrobe.Ben felt anticipation bubble in his gut as quick little Rey made her way through the empty, snowy streets, and to the bin where he’d stashed her secret gift. When she did, Ben had to stop himself from accidentally letting go of the branch he was hanging from, he was very excited to see her reaction. She heaved the heavy lid open, immediately pausing when she saw the torn Christmas wrapping paper on top. It was an unusual thing to see in this bin, since it was hidden behind an empty house, but Rey checked it the most anyway. She pulled out the paper, seeming to realize that it still had something inside.

Gingerly tearing at the paper, Rey looked unsure of the gift. The little girl kicked at the snow with her boots, and took a moment to cautiously scan her surroundings. Ben tried not to be disappointed at her lack of reaction, and outright suspicion, at seeing the bag, realizing that Rey was still a little girl, and a beige leather bag probably wasn’t something she’d actually want, or expect. But he felt relief flood through him when she slung the bag over her shoulder, and cleaned up the paper to toss back in the bin. Rey went back to the house, rather than continuing her scavenging into the late hours, and Ben felt slightly surprised. He continued his ritual of making sure she was safely inside, before heading back to his cold, empty home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you guess why Rey visits the empty house so often? 
> 
> It‘s her old home, and she goes every night, hoping her father has returned.

**Author's Note:**

> Ah, be gentle with me.


End file.
